1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to golf ball targets, and more particularly to a portable golf ball target which more accurately simulates golf ball movement characteristics at an actual golf hole.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Many golfers prefer to improve their putting by practicing with golf ball targets which may be placed upon a floor. Generally, these golf ball targets have in common a specifically designated location toward which the golf ball is putted, the accuracy of the putt being determined by how proximately thereto the golf ball ends its roll.
Examples of golf ball targets are described in the following references. U.S. Pat. No. 884,277 to Hughes, dated Apr. 7, 1908, discloses an indoor golf game target in the form of an annulus with a straight edge for encountering the golf ball and a curved wall behind for striking the golf ball. U.S. Pat. No. 1,510,239 to Monosmith, dated Mar. 17, 1923, discloses a putting hazard in the form of a truncated cone with a dished top. U.S. Pat. No. 1,656,740 to Kurtz, dated Jan. 17, 1928, discloses a portable golf ball target having raised annular rings and a centrally positioned flag for use on a fairway. U.S. Pat. No. 3,081,090 to Congleton, dated Mar. 12, 1963, discloses an indoor, outdoor golf game including cup pad holes shaped in the form of a circular, inclined pad with a central hole. U.S. Pat. No. 3,190,657 to Johnson, dated June 22, 1965, discloses an inflatable golf ball target in the shape of a ring. U.S. Pat. No. 3,512,262 to Smyk et al, dated May 19, 1970, discloses a golf ball gauge and target in which the user may putt a golf ball toward it and, according to the inventor, the ball will make it up a rather very steep incline to a central opening. U.S. Pat. No. 4,171,134 to Reck, dated Oct. 16, 1979, discloses a golf game which includes an inclined circular cup having a central hole through which an anchor and flag pole may be placed. U.S. Pat. No. 4,647,047 to Little, dated Mar. 3, 1987, discloses a putting target which is structured to minimize the forces the golf ball must overcome at the target, thereby simulating conditions at an actual golf hole; the structure includes a truncated conical target having a flexible wall. Finally, U.S. Pat. No. 4,728,106 to Shore, dated Mar. 1, 1988, discloses a putting target which indicates to the user the precision of a putt by the nature of the deflection of the golf ball at the target; this deflection is determined by a centrally disposed ridge and a back wall.
The wide diversity of the above indicated prior art golf ball targets suggests an underlying need in the prior art, which has not yet been satisfied, to construct a portable golf ball target in which the ball reacts at the target in a manner very similar to the way it would react at an actual golf hole. Little, while trying to achieve this laudable result has not been entirely successful in that his flexible wall must be deformed at contact with the golf ball, thereby potentially altering its trajectory. What is needed, therefore, is a portable golf ball target which encounters the golf ball in a manner not unlike that of a natural golf hole by simulating all the conditions necessary to sink a golf ball in a natural hole.